<bt>Margaret Allen Flartey, 83, lifelong volunteer and widow of a World War II combat veteran, died Aug. 4, in the Fairfax Nursing Center, following a prolonged illness. Born Dec. 27, 1920, in Kingston, Pa., to John R. Allen Sr. and Anna Lewis, Margaret Flartey was a 1937 graduate of Kingston High School.
On Nov. 13, 1946, in Edwardsville, Pa., she married Joseph Patrick Flartey, who had returned to Pennsylvania after having served as the first sergeant of the 91st Army Air Service Squadron as it fought its way up the Italian peninsula from Naples south of Rome to the Po River Valley in the far north. The couple had one child, Hilda Margaret Flartey, born March 11, 1948. Patrick Flartey died at Walter Reed Army Hospital on Jan. 30, 2003, at age 87.
Following their wedding, Patrick Flartey served as a career NCO in the Air Force, and the couple lived in Florida, Texas, South Carolina, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Alaska during the service. It was during those years that Margaret Flartey served as a Gray Lady volunteer and worked with a number of other civic and service organizations. Concurrent with her volunteer work, Margaret Flartey served as secretary to the Lutheran Synod offices in Allentown for several years. She was a longtime member of the Order of Eastern Star, Allentown, Pa., Chapter 298, and served as worthy matron in 1972-73.
In addition to her daughter, Margaret Flartey is survived by her sisters, Elizabeth Seitchek of Kingston, Pa.; and Ruth Farber of Allentown, Pa. Her brother, John R. Allen Jr., died Jan. 28, 1962. Her sister Mary Bick died in 2003.
Funeral services for Margaret Flartey took place Saturday, Aug. 21, at 1 p.m., in the Church of the Holy Comforter (Episcopal), Vienna. The Rev. Richard A. Lord officiated. Burial took place Monday, Aug. 23, at 3 p.m., in Arlington National Cemetery. Donations to the American Stroke Association may be made in her memory.